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5.04.2012

Video documentation by local activists and independent media shows that
police officers and county deputies from across Minnesota have been
picking up young people near Peavey Plaza for a training program to
recognize drug-impaired drivers. Multiple participants say officers gave
them illicit drugs and provided other incentives to take the drugs. The
Occupy movement, present at Peavey Plaza since April 7th, appears to be
targeted as impaired people are dropped off at the Plaza, and others
say they've been rewarded for offering to snitch on the movement.

Local
independent media activists and members of Communities United Against
Police Brutality began investigating police conduct around the Plaza
after witnessing police dropping off impaired people at the plaza and
hearing rumors that they were offering people drugs. We videotaped
police conduct and interviewed participants, learning some very
disturbing information about the DRE program.

Officers stated on
record the DRE program, run by the Minnesota State Patrol, has no
Institutional Review Board or independent oversight. They agreed no
ambulances or EMTs were on site at the Richfield MnDOT facility near the
airport where most subjects were taken. Multiple times, participants
left Peavey Plaza sober, returned intoxicated, and said they'd been
given free drugs by law enforcement. We documented on more than one
occasion, someone being told they were sober by one officer, and then
picked up by a different officer, and returning intoxicated.

Given
the dangers of impaired driving, there is value in training law
enforcement officers to distinguish between the effects of various drugs
and several common medical conditions. However, we have captured video
footage of instances in which DRE trainees recruited subjects who are
not already impaired, and those participants say they were given drugs
by the officers.

Although program documents indicate that participants must sign a waiver, https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/msp/forms-reports/Documents/SFSTSponsorResponsib...
there was no indication from any of the participants interviewed that a
waiver was offered or obtained. Further, video footage seems to
validate the recollections of participants that no medical personnel or
ambulance were on site during the observation and testing in Richfield. A
DRE officer told one of our investigators that no Institutional Review
Board assessment of the program has been made, a requirement of all
experiments involving human subjects. Since it's unethical to encourage
people to take drugs--whether by giving them drugs directly or enticing
them with food, cigarettes, or other rewards (which participants say
they were given)--it is unlikely such a program would pass IRB review as
it endangers the test subjects.

According to the WCCO article
from May 2011, officer trainees in the past have worked with various
non-profit organizations to recruit drug users. It would appear now that
they are no longer relying solely on this tactic, instead recruiting
users directly and, participants say, providing them with drugs. After
the sessions, these individuals are then dropped off in public areas
without supportive care, creating a public safety hazard. In an example
at Peavey Plaza caught on film, an individual who said he's been smoking
courtesy of the police for an hour, crossed a line of Minneapolis
police barricades, climbed to the top of a large sign and sat 15 feet
above the sidewalk swinging his arms and legs in front of a police
camera.

Our investigation points to particular efforts to target
and recruit youth. Further, law enforcement officers have been taped
recruiting people from the Peavey Plaza area of Nicollet Mall and have
dropped off a number of impaired individuals at Peavey Plaza. In some
instances, Minneapolis police squad cars were present while DRE trainees
recruited people at Peavey Plaza. After receiving drugs, some subjects
were asked to snitch on the Occupy movement or asked about various
people and activities of Occupy, they said. Given efforts by the
Minneapolis city council to pass an ordinance designed to restrict
access to Peavey Plaza by the Occupy movement, the conduct of DRE
trainees points to the possibility that they are working hand-in-glove
with Minneapolis police to discredit and disrupt the Occupy movement.

"I
think most people would be very surprised to have our tax dollars used
to get people high," states Michelle Gross, president of Communities
United Against Police Brutality. "These activities call into question
the methods and motives of this DRE training."